Alien points of view

I remember reading something, somewhere, at some time, about how The Next Generation had to work at giving characters points of view that seemed "alien". The specific example that I recall they were proud of was Worf letting the Romulan die in The Enemy.

Fast-backward to the original Star Trek. They didn't seem to have any trouble with it. A personal favorite of mine was The Savage Curtain. The rock-creature "Yarnek" had allowed the Enterprise crew to watch the battle on their screen, saying something like "...so they too can enjoy and profit from it." I love how he just assumed that the humans will see the value of his good vs. evil test. I mean, it makes sense to him, why wouldn't everyone else?

There are other examples which escape me, but I always liked these touches!

In "Day of the Dove" when Kang's wife is telling him that the life support readouts are getting steady, Kang says, "Cause them to be unsteady." Just the phrasing of that makes me feel like it's a direct literal translation from Klingon or something rather than just finding an equivalent sentence in English, like "Make them unsteady."

^The Medusan meld! I just watched that last weekend. Collos/Spock's little speech about the loneliness of being confined to a physical body, how alone we all are even amongst other people, and how none of us have truly mastered simple communication. Beautiful.

I like the scene in "Elaan of Troyius" where Elaan blithely says, "I have eliminated that problem."

Kirk says, "You've eliminated the teacher. The problem still remains."

She was a great character.

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Funny you should mention her: I just watched that episode last night before bed. I always loved her line, "I have given your crew permission not to kneel in our presence, what else do you want?" I cannot picture any other actress bringing that character to life like she did.

In "Day of the Dove" when Kang's wife is telling him that the life support readouts are getting steady, Kang says, "Cause them to be unsteady." Just the phrasing of that makes me feel like it's a direct literal translation from Klingon or something rather than just finding an equivalent sentence in English, like "Make them unsteady."

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Good one! I've heard it a million times, but I never though of that line like that!

^The Medusan meld! I just watched that last weekend. Collos/Spock's little speech about the loneliness of being confined to a physical body, how alone we all are even amongst other people, and how none of us have truly mastered simple communication. Beautiful.

The complexity of Vulcan culture is an example in itself. We get to see a lot of aspects of it- the rituals, the gestures, the ideology.. Notably in Amok Time and Journey to Babel, but really across the whole series.

For truly alien points of view, you can't do much better than giant flying brain cells that whack onto your back, or a sentient cloud that consumes red blood cells. We never did really understand either of them. And of course, the salt vampire, the bloodless war of Eminiar 7 (sp?), Landru and his world -- all pretty alien.

One of the neat things about "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is that Gary Mitchell's point of view BECOMES alien once he's been deified by contact with the galactic barrier. It's an effectively creepy way of making it clear that this person is no longer really Gary Mitchell, one that works at least as well as the glowing eyeballs.

And I agree with Rayna; I love the portrayals of Vulcan culture and how like-us but not-like-us they can be.

I thought Eleen's line in "Friday's Child" was a good example of an alien point of view. Maab is going to kill Eleen because she's carrying the child of the previous ruler, and Kirk interferes and saves her. Her response is "I was proud to obey the laws. Kill him first. He laid hands upon me. It is my right to see him die."

In Let That Be Your Last Battlefield, when Bele is explaining the Cheron situation with Kirk and Spock, the exchange goes something like this:

Bele: It is obvious to the most simple-minded that Lokai is of an inferior breed.Spock: The obvious visual evidence, Commissioner, is that he is of the same breed as yourself. Bele: Are you blind, Commander Spock? Well, Look at me.
(pause)Bele: Look at me.Kirk: You're black on one side and white on the other.Bele: I am black on the right side.
(puzzled pause)Kirk: I fail to see the significant difference.Bele: Lokai is white on the right si..all his people are white on the right side.
(Kirk and Spock evince puzzled looks)

This one is great. Not only does it show an alien viewpoint, but it simultaneously shows an all-too-human one...the alien point of view becomes ours, at our worst.

This episode is a guilty pleasure of mine. Whatever defects it may have, Frank Gorshin and Lou Antonio knock it out of the park in my opinion, and their performances more than make up for the flaws.

I always liked the Melkot in "Spectre of the Gun". They're pretty blunt about their feelings, even posting a clearly understood No Trespassing sign, unlike Balok of the First Federation, who uses deception.

Aliens! You have encroached on the space of the Melkot. You will turn back immediately. This is the only warning you will receive.

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Translation: "Hey you! Get off my lawn. I ain't gonna tell ya again."

Kirk and party are again addressed as aliens, outsiders, and a contamination when they seem to meet a Melkot face to face. And since the patterns of their deaths are taken from Kirk's mind, the setting, the actions, and even the confrontations with the Sheriff and the Earps are like something out of an old west movie.

KIRK: . . .We don't want any trouble.
MORGAN: If you don't want any trouble, what are you doing in my town?

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When the crew finally finds a way out of the situation without killing the Earps, only then do the Melkot address Kirk by name.

The best thing about them is although their level of xenophobia has been seen in other species, these are definitely non-humanoid creatures for a change.